My husband and I took a leap and opened an Etsy shop. More great prints are coming in the new year.

I started my daughter's room makeover this year too! The walls have gone from green to gray and some minor changes to the room like gold polka dots have made the room feel girly and glam. It's taken me a little longer than I planned but I am 99% done.

We've been in our home for five and a half years and I re-capped some of the changes we've done so far. Almost every inch of this house has been touched and made over to fit our family's style.

Our master bathroom received some new faucets from Pfister and took it up a notch. Still lots of projects in store for this bathroom. I would love to change the lighting and tear out and re-do the shower.

The board and batten in the back entry was updated. I took the trim a little higher up the wall and added more hooks. This gave us more room for backpacks and jackets.

Friday, November 18, 2016

We are less than a week out from Thanksgiving. I am so ready to spend time with friends and family and stuff my face with good food. We are hosting this year so I've been playing around with a tablescape. I wanted to keep it simple but still look nice.

Of course I had to use my blue!

I layered a gold charger with a simple white dinner plate and blue salad plates.

Who knows if it will actually look like this Thanksgiving afternoon when it's eating time. We usually do buffet style and I have way more people coming than this table will seat.

Wednesday, October 19, 2016

These bead garlands have been popping up all over the place. I've seen them in so many vignettes around blogland and I knew I wanted some. Thing is I never actually looked for them. It was something I knew I could make. Well fast forward a few months and that's exactly what I did.

This was a super simple DIY. I bought two sizes of wood beads from Michael's. I bought the ones with holes already in them but they do carry more sizes that do not have holes. I wasn't in the mood to drill my own holes. I also bought some twine for stringing the beads.

I laid out my beads how I knew I wanted to string them. I put the larger beads in the center and placed the smaller beads along the ends for a graduated look.

I strung my beads onto the twine and spaced them out slightly so my garland would have some give to it. If not, the strand would be too stiff and not move much. I knotted the ends, cut the excess twine and voila, I was done. I kept mine as a strand but I've also seen them in a circle.

I used them in my little wooden bowl in the dining room.

I also like how they look on my tray in the family room. My son was intrigued with them so they immediately became a new toy.

They are so versatile and look good anywhere. I'm sure they'll end up in other places or I may even make a few more strands.

Thursday, October 13, 2016

How many of you can relate to too many toys in the family room? I sure can. We have had the same brown, faux leather ottoman for several years. It did the job of storing and hiding toys that the kids kept downstairs. I didn't think there was any other way. Ever since we moved, I thought it looked too small in our space. It wasn't large enough for more than one person to actaully put their feet up and the cushion on top was no longer plush. There came a point one day where I was tired of picking up toys that my kids had pulled out and left out. I wanted something different.

I really wanted a coffee table. I begin looking and found several that I liked. I was going for something with a wood and metal combo like below. The more I thought about it, the more I was afraid of one of the kids hitting their head on the corner of it.

So I went back to the beginning and thought I could marry having a soft ottoman top with a coffee table look. So I landed on this. It was perfect. I was sold. Then hubby mentioned the linen fabric getting dirty because it was so light colored. Because he WAS going to put his feet on it no matter what.

Really? What I really wanted I couldn't get? So I knew another ottoman was really my only choice. I found this and loved it. It would still hold some toys and movies but I would get a larger piece to fill the space in the floor. It's large at 34 inches square.

We all love it. It actually has a presence in the room and doesn't look wimpy. I went with the charcoal color. I love gray and I figured it would hide
any stains. Most of the toys went upstairs with the old ottoman to the
loft. I kept the movies and books downstairs in the new one. I may
store a few blankets in it as well.

I couldn't wait to put my World Market tray on it.I've had fun styling it.

Here it is with my wooden sphere switched out for fall.

So what do you think? So much better right? It's already gotten so much use and everybody can reach it from the sofa. Here's to hoping it lasts as long as the other ottoman did.

Monday, September 26, 2016

Is it Monday already?I don't know about you guys, but I have lots of wood scraps laying around in the garage. I decided to put them to use. I like quote signs so this was an obvious choice.

I chose a small piece of 1x4 and got to work. With the addition of craft paint and a brush, this was an easy little project.

I first painted my wood with some black craft paint using my foam brush. Since I don't have a cutting machine and I didn't bother to print and trace a stencil, I free-handed the words in pencil so I could erase if I made a mistake. Which I did several times. I chose the word blessed.

After a few coats of white paint to fill in my words, I had a cheap little sign I could put anywhere. I used a tiny bristled brush for this step.

I paired it with my painted pumpkins for fall in the dining room.

How cute is this little wire basket I found in Dollar Tree?

I know with all the wood scraps I have, I'll be making more of these soon.

Friday, September 16, 2016

The paint most used in my house is Behr. It's affordable and the paint is easy to work with. When I buy it, I know what I'm getting myself into.

Recently I saw they posted the color trends for 2017. These are 20 limited edition colors that are trendy and will help you create a loved and livable home. You can choose colors to fit your personality.

I think I am more drawn to the Composed Palette. I am more into blues and grays. According to Behr, the Composed Palette includes earth tones and jewel tones. They are more of a backdrop to allow you to show off your other decor. I love the Laid Back Gray and Wanderlust. They are very similar to colors I already have in my home.

The Confident Palette has brighter colors. They are adventurous and more dramatic. These are colors I would consider accents or used more for the decor and not the walls. But like the name says, if you want to make a statement, use a fun color. I think these colors would look great in a kids room.

The Comfortable Palette is what I think most people would choose. The colors are more natural and lighter. They are in the pastel family.

The next time I am in Home Depot, I will be sure to stop and take a look in person.